By CountingPips.com
U.S. Retail Sales decreased unexpectedly in the month of December as consumer spending on retail goods declined for the month following stronger than previously estimated sales in November. Advance estimates of retail sales showed that sales decreased by 0.3 percent to a total of $353.0 billion in December according to the report by the U.S. Commerce Department released today. November’s retail sales data was revised higher to show an increase of 1.8 percent for the month after the original
On an annual basis, the December retail sales level was 5.4 percent higher than the December 2008 sales level following November’s annual increase of 2.5 percent.
The December retail data was worse than the 0.5 percent increase for the month that the market forecasters were expecting.
Core retail sales, excluding automobile sales and parts, decreased by 0.2 percent in December after the revised data showed that core sales gained by 1.9 percent in November. On an annual basis, core sales increased by 5.2 percent in December from the December 2008 level following an annual gain of 2.0 percent in November.
Contributing to the decreased retail sales numbers for December was a 2.6 percent decline in electronics & appliance stores. Also showing decreases for the month were automobiles sales with a 0.8 percent shortfall, food & beverage stores with a 0.8 percent decline while miscellaneous stores retailers saw a decrease of 1.0 percent for the month. Positively contributing to retail sales last month were gasoline station sales, health & personal care stores, sporting goods, hobby, book & music stores and nonstore retailers.
Weekly Jobless Claims rise.
A separate government release by the U.S. Labor Department showed that weekly U.S. jobless claims increased in the week that ended on January 9th. New jobless claims grew to a total of 444,000 unemployed workers, an increase over the prior week by 11,000 workers. The 4-week moving average of unemployed workers fell by 9,000 from the prior week to a total of 440,750.
Meanwhile, workers seeking continuing claims for unemployment benefits for the week ending January 2nd decreased by 211,000 workers to a total of 4,596,000 unemployed workers. The four week moving average of continuing claims declined by 151,500 to 4,855,000 total workers.
US Dollar mixed in Forex Trading.
The U.S. dollar has been mixed in forex trading today against the other major currencies. The dollar has made gains today versus the euro and Swiss franc while falling against the British pound, Canadian dollar, New Zealand dollar, Australian dollar and the Japanese yen at 12:57 pm EST in the US trading session.
The U.S. stock markets have been positive so far today with the Dow Jones increasing by over 20 points, the Nasdaq gaining over 5 points and the S&P 500 up by over 1 point. Oil has edged down to $79.52 while gold has increased by $3.50 to trade at the $1,139.90 per ounce level.
USD/JPY 1H Chart – The US Dollar decreasing versus the Japanese Yen today in forex trading. The USD/JPY has declined to the 91.00 level today and is trading lower from the start of the week by approximately 170 pips. A shortfall this week would mark the USD/JPY’s second consecutive week of decline following three straight weeks of gains.
